NAIROBI, Kenya May 4 \u2013 Orange Democratic Movement\u2019s Lind Mwananchi movement has opposed the planned visit and address by William Ruto to the Parliament of Tanzania on Tuesday, describing the move as a betrayal of democratic principles.<\/p>\n
In a strongly worded statement, the group it argued that the timing of the visit\u2014coming after what it termed as \u201cgrave happenings\u201d in Tanzania\u2014raises serious concerns.<\/p>\n
Linda Mwananchi said that while Kenya and Tanzania have historically enjoyed cordial relations, the visit risks undermining democratic values cherished by Kenyans.<\/p>\n
The group emphasized that the Kenyan presidency symbolizes national sovereignty and should not be used to legitimize actions perceived to violate democratic norms.<\/p>\n
The statement criticized Tanzania\u2019s recent general elections, claiming they fell short of credible democratic standards.<\/p>\n
According to the group, opposition leaders faced arrests, intimidation, and violence, with the main opposition party, CHADEMA, reportedly barred from participating.<\/p>\n
It further cited the case of opposition leader Tundu Lissu, who was allegedly arrested and subjected to what the group described as a politically motivated trial.<\/p>\n
Linda Mwananchi referenced findings by the African Union Election Observer Mission, which reportedly concluded that the election did not meet established democratic standards.<\/p>\n
The observers highlighted issues such as ballot irregularities, internet restrictions, and an environment not conducive to a free and fair vote.<\/p>\n
The group also pointed to concerns raised by the United Nations, including remarks by Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres, over alleged human rights violations. These reportedly included extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, and mass arrests of opposition figures.<\/p>\n
Regional observers from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) were also cited as having noted low voter turnout and an uneven political playing field.<\/p>\n
Additionally, a coalition of Western missions reportedly called for investigations into electoral violence and condemned alleged attempts to conceal evidence of abuses.<\/p>\n
Linda Mwananchi argued that by proceeding with the visit and addressing Tanzania\u2019s parliament, President Ruto risks conferring legitimacy on what it termed a flawed electoral process.<\/p>\n
\u201cSuch a high-profile engagement could be interpreted as endorsing a regime whose democratic credentials are under serious question,\u201d the statement suggested.<\/p>\n
The group concluded by urging Kenyan leadership to align foreign policy decisions with democratic values and human rights principles, warning against actions that may undermine regional accountability.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
NAIROBI, Kenya May 4 \u2013 Orange Democratic Movement\u2019s Lind Mwananchi movement has opposed the planned visit and address by William Ruto to the Parliament of Tanzania on Tuesday, describing the move as a betrayal of democratic principles. In a strongly worded statement, the group it argued that the timing of the visit\u2014coming after what it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-139812","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139812","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=139812"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139812\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=139812"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=139812"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=139812"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}